Help with a play

[spits]

What if B picked up the ball and ran around the EZ, breaking tackles, and finally being tacked in the EZ.
Would it then become a safety because he is obviously trying to advance, or is it always a TB when downed in the EZ?

[Bob M.]

Originally Posted by spits

What if B picked up the ball and ran around the EZ, breaking tackles, and finally being tacked in the EZ.
Would it then become a safety because he is obviously trying to advance, or is it always a TB when downed in the EZ?

REPLY: No, it's not a safety...the overarching factor for determining TB or safety is not what's done with the ball by B after he gets possession in the endzone. It's how the ball got into the endzone in the first place. As the others have said--and even for your case--the result is a touchback.

[ljudge]

I seem to recall there's a case book play that's somewhat close to the revised version here. I believe it's something like B intercepts the ball in his own endzone and decides to lateral the ball to a teammate (backward pass) and the ball is never caught and simply goes over the endline where it falls dead. Whether I recall it correctly or not, it's the same result if the ball was subsequently passed backward by B. Touchback.

[Forksref]

Originally Posted by ljudge

I seem to recall there's a case book play that's somewhat close to the revised version here. I believe it's something like B intercepts the ball in his own endzone and decides to lateral the ball to a teammate (backward pass) and the ball is never caught and simply goes over the endline where it falls dead. Whether I recall it correctly or not, it's the same result if the ball was subsequently passed backward by B. Touchback.

If we had a forward (illegal) pass in the EZ, then we'd have a safety because we'd have a foul by the offense (team with the ball) in the EZ.

[grantsrc]

Originally Posted by spits

What if B picked up the ball and ran around the EZ, breaking tackles, and finally being tacked in the EZ.
Would it then become a safety because he is obviously trying to advance, or is it always a TB when downed in the EZ?

No, still a touchback. How did the ball get into the EZ first?